The news has been filled the last few years with stories of glaciers and ice shelves melting—breaking off and floating into oceans. When this occurs, the result is concern on the part of those who are monitoring the effects of global climate change.
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) recently reported that ice shelves in the southern section of the Antarctic Peninsula are retreating, as a result of climate change. The USGS also reported that every ice front in the southern part of Antarctica has been retreating, particularly since 1990.
USGS scientist Jane Ferrigno said via a press release: “This research is part of a larger ongoing USGS project that is for the first time studying the entire Antarctic coastline in detail and this is important because the Antarctic ice sheet contains 91 percent of Earth’s glacier ice. The loss of ice shelves is evidence of the effects of global warming. We need to be alert and continually understand and observe how our climate system is changing.”
One of the most dramatic effects of the melting of the ice shelves is the potential for rising seas, which particularly puts coastal communities and other low-lying areas in jeopardy.
The USGS also pointed out that the southern Peninsula, which is the focus of this latest study, is also the coldest part of the Peninsula, demonstrating to USGS officials that “global warming is affecting the entire length of the Peninsula.”
So while it might be easy to view the news of melting glaciers as not too significant in the broad scope of things, this latest report should remind us of the effects of global climate change.
Related posts:
- Will Global Warming Affect Drinking Water?
- How Will Melting Glaciers Affect Us?
- Global Warming and Recreational Water Quality
- Why Don’t We Hear Much About Acid Rain Anymore?
- Preventing Ice Dams
